Lily Allen "astonished by the lack of female executives" in the music industry

Ladies, the music biz needs us

Ever since Lily Allen landed on the music scene in her prom dress and trainers, saying-it-how-it-is has been her schtick. And now, Lily's speaking out about the lack of women in top music jobs.

"I am signed to Warners and have been into many different record company buildings - but am astonished by the lack of female executives," she told The Sun. "I cannot understand or fathom it. You will also notice of those big successful female artists, there is always a 'man behind the woman' piece. If it's Beyonce, it's Jay Z. If it's Adele, it's Paul Epworth. Me? It was Mark Ronson and it was the same with Amy Winehouse.

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"You never get that with men. You can't think of the man behind the man. Because it is a conversation that never happens. If you are Ed Sheeran or someone, no one ever talks about who has produced or who is the man behind Ed Sheeran."

With the recent furore over the BBC's decision to ban all-male panel shows, and ongoing where-the-bobbins-are-all-the-female-film-directors-chat, Lily has waded into a live debate. Whether it's comedy, drama, film, documentary, screenplays or music, the real power players are the execs sitting on swivel chairs at walnut desks. They're the ones with access to hard cash, who decide which pilots get commissioned, how much of the marketing budget is spent on a particular artist, and how to pull in the army of people necessary to propel a star from average fame into the global stratosphere.

The creative industries are the UK's biggest economic driver. The folk who made Gogglebox even accompanied David Cameron on his recent trade mission to China, for goodness sake. The only way this sector can continue to grow is if talented women get their chance to shine – and that means shifting some suits off those swivel chairs.

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